For Pakistani Flag Industry, Obama Victory May Be Encouraging

For those selling U.S. flags to burn at protests in Pakistan, Obama's victory may provide encouraging news.

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Rachel Hirshfeld, 08/11/12 14:06

burning American flag

Reuters

Many Pakistanis fear that President Barack Obama’s re-election will mean a surge in American drone strikes. For those producing and selling U.S. flags to burn at protests, however, his victory could be provide encouraging news, AFP reported.

Demonstrations against U.S. missile strikes targeting suspected Al-Qaeda and Taliban terrorists are common in Pakistan, and no protest is complete without America’s beloved Stars and Stripes being sent up in flames.

Nadeem Shah, the owner of a flag business in Rawalpindi, the twin city of the capital Islamabad, said he expected more drone strikes -- and more protests.

“Of course Obama has become stronger now and he will push his policies harder and there will be more drone strikes because he himself is stronger now,” Shah told AFP.

“When the drone strikes increase the protests against these strikes will also increase in Pakistan and it can have an impact on the flags and poster business,” he added.

Pakistan’s flag industry enjoyed a boom in September, when Muslims blamed their deeply imbedded hatred against America on an anti-Islam film made in the United States. While the film was merely a timely and convenient excuse to renew anti-American protests, it quickly became the scapegoat upon which the Muslim world could place their fury.